Princess Kristin (Eili Harboe) is turning 18 and betrothed to be married. The wedding must happen immediately, otherwise a gruesome troll will kidnap her in the mountains. Arrogant Prince Frederick (Allan Hyde) arrives to rescue her but, rightly finding him detestable, she rejects him and runs away. After her father, King Erik (Gard B. Eidsvold), then offers a monetary reward to whoever can find and return her, the Askeladd brothers - Per (Mads Sjøgård Pettersen), Pål (Elias Holmen Sørensen) and Esken (Vebjørn Enger) - answer the call, eager to save the failing farm they live and work on with their widowed father (Thorbjørn Harr). As they get further on their journey to Kristin, however, Frederick is out to stop them the entire way.
Based on an 18th-century Norwegian fairy tale, The Ash Lad - In the Hall of the Mountain King sounds unashamedly derivative and old-fashioned and it actually is, but it's so enjoyable because it truly makes no bones about that! There's an admirable self-awareness and defiant fantasy tradition to it that somehow makes it refreshing, rollicking and charming, certainly more so than most recent Hollywood fantasies which of course have ten times the budget. Director Mikkel Brænne Sandemose and writers Aleksander Kirkwood Brown, Espen Enger all evidently loved this tale and wanted to share it with a wide audience, and they tell it thus with unquestionable exuberance. The cast also match this, with Hyde especially enjoyable as the nefarious Frederick.
The technicals are also very realistic for such a modest budget, and the score is also very fitting and sweeping. But what really makes this a treat is simply the tale itself and, once again, particularly the obvious and unabashed reverence with which it's told.
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